Construction framing member with integrated thermal break and method for manufacturing same

ABSTRACT

A construction framing member comprising a framing member and an insulative material disposed in a channel within the framing member. Thermal bridging properties of finished walls constructed with the product are altered positively, by incorporation of the thermal break in the finished wall created by the insulative material within the framing members. A method of manufacturing the construction framing member is disclosed—a channel is created in an integral framing member using a saw, router or the like, for the placement of the insulative material.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to building construction materials, andmore particularly to construction materials with enhanced insulativeproperties.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Improvements in building construction materials and methods areconstantly sought to enhance the comfort and economy of residential andcommercial buildings.

One of the areas in which a large amount of effort is currentlyconcentrated is in the development of alternate materials andconstruction methods to increase energy efficiency. Heating a buildingis negatively impacted if the building is not properly sealed andinsulated; gaps in the structure of the building as well as thin,non-insulated walls allow heat to transfer out of the building andincrease heating costs, as well as result in uneven heating levelswithin the building.

In addition to the increased cost of energy for heating the building,there is also undue damage to the environment due to the increasedamounts of heating fuel or energy which are consumed to keep thesebuildings at comfortable temperatures. As such it is desirable toprovide or enhance the effect of insulation in the walls of buildings toprevent or minimize heat loss.

Typical walls of a building are manufactured with dimensional lumber orother stud materials, having a gypsum or other type of wall board on theinterior of the building. Vapor barrier may also be used between theinterior wall surface and the studs or dimensional framing members whichprovide structure to the wall in the building. The studs act as an innermember framework which, along with providing structure and support forthe wall itself, also support wall coverings, windows and doors. Theyalso provide mounting cavities or mounting surfaces for electricalwiring, plumbing, HVAC systems and other utilities.

Standard dimensional lumber or other aluminum or steel stud materialsare often used to construct these walls. Most often interior walls aregenerally constructed with 2 inch×4 inch wall studs, although sometimes2 inch×6 inch wall studs would be used to provide more strength.Typically the studs or framing members are placed a predefined standardspacing apart, for example either every 16 or 24 inches. Extra studs canbe used or provided wherever walls intersect, or to provide a nailingarea or additional support.

Batts of insulation would typically be installed in the spaces betweenframing members inside a wall to provide insulation and reduce heat lossthrough the cavities between the framing members. To the exterior of abuilding wall there is often an air barrier and some kind of an exteriorsurface or siding which is attached through to the studs.

Insulation batts are important in providing insulation in the areas ofthe cavities between the framing members. Some common forms ofinsulation hafts are made from fiberglass, mineral wool, or cotton.These batts are fibrous sheets that arc long and wide enough to fitsnugly between wall studs. Another form of insulation is loose-fillinsulation, which is a light fibrous fill. This type of insulation islaborious to install and typically requires a professional installer.Furthermore, this type of insulation is easily affected by air movement.There is also spray-applied insulation that can fill cavities very well,but again, must be applied by a specialized contractor.

An effective insulation system will prevent the movement of air throughthe system. If there are any cavities, they will be filled withinsulation, leaving no gaps in or around the insulation. The structuralmembers in the wall oftentimes act as thermal bridges, extending fromthe warm side of the insulation to the cold side of the insulation,allowing for an easy escape of heat. While insulation batts installed inthe cavities between the framing members provide some insulation to abuilding, the framing members or studs of the wall allow heat transferto occur from the warm side to the cool side of the wall through theframing members themselves. This problem is further emphasized with theuse of metal member portions instead of wood, because much more heatflows through metal studs and joists than through pieces of wood.

There have been many attempts to prevent heat loss through thermalbridges such as the framing members. One of the most popular methods ofpreventing this type of heat loss is to provide some type of rigid,board-stock insulation on the exterior face of the studs, usuallyexpanded polystyrene or insulation batts. However, installation of thistype of insulation on all the exterior faces of the studs involveswrapping the entire house with a rigid foam batt, or similar type ofinsulation product, which is very expensive and labour intensive. Again,this type of material can also be an irritant or hazardous duringinstallation and will often require professional installation.

Another attempt to minimize this type of heat loss is to space the wallstuds at 24 inches apart, rather than 16 inches apart. This extraspacing between the studs reduces the total number of studs in the wall,thus reducing the surface area of the framing members available for heattransfer. However, the reduction in the number of total framing membersreduces the strength of the wall. As such, it is not desirable to reducethe number of framing members, if possible. Furthermore, the reductionin framing members does not eliminate, or even minimize, the heat lossthat will occur through the remaining framing members.

A further attempt to minimize heat loss through wall studs uses a methodof staggering the wall studs that appear next to one another. A firstwall stud would be situated against the inner wall leaving a gap betweenthe first wall stud and the outer wall, and a second wall stud adjacentthe first wall stud would be situated against the outer wall leaving agap between the second wall stud and the inner wall, whereby the wallstuds would alternate positions as such along the wall. In this way, agiven stud will not concurrently contact the materials of the inner walland the materials of the outer wall, and will consequently be unable totransfer heat directly from the inner wall, through to the stud, to theouter wall and out of the building. However, there are many drawbacksassociated with this method, as well. This method of reducing heat lossthrough studs is very labor intensive and expensive, as each stud needsto be perfectly placed in relation to the studs next to it. Thisfurthermore increases the thickness of the wall and reduces the strengthof the wall since each of the inner wall and the outer wall are onlyprovided with one half of the number of wall studs for support.

What is needed, therefore, is a construction framing member that hasenhanced thermal insulative properties but is capable of manufactureusing relatively simple methods that do not introduce undue complexity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention seeks to provide a construction framing memberthat comprises standard material but incorporates a thermal break in theform of an insulative material.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided aframing member for use in the manufacture of a construction framingmember, the framing member including a channel for receiving insulativematerial. The framing member is preferably composed of wood and thechannel is preferably a channel running substantially the length of theframing member and exposed at the surface of the framing member at oneedge thereof, and extending through the majority of the thickness of themember.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provideda construction framing member that comprises a framing member comprisinga channel, and an insulative material situate in the channel. Theinsulative material has a lower thermal conductivity than the framingmember which houses it and therefore increases the thermal insulationproperties of the construction framing member.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided amethod of manufacturing a framing member comprising the steps of: (a)providing a length of wood suitable to be used as a framing member, thelength of wood having a depth; (b) providing a wood-cutting tool havinga cutting implement with an operative length less than the depth; and(c) cutting a channel in the length of wood in the direction of thedepth using the cutting implement to form the framing member, such thatthe channel penetrates into the length of wood to less than the depth.The wood-cutting tool may be a table saw or router or any other similartool known in the art, and the cutting implement would then be a bladeor bit or similar cutting implement, respectively, which can be set to alength that is less than the depth, such that when the cutting of thechannel is completed a portion of wood still remains intact beyond theset reach of the cutting implement. There could also be a purpose builtmachine for this purpose, which would cut the channel in the wood andthen in a following step place insulative material in the channel (byrolling a rolled insulation into the channel, foaming a ply insulationinto place or the like).

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provideda method of manufacturing a construction framing member comprising thesteps of: (a) providing a length of wood suitable to be used as aframing member, the length of wood having a depth; (b) providing awood-cutting tool having a cutting implement with an operative lengthless than the depth; (c) cutting a channel in the length of wood in thedirection of the depth using the cutting implement to form a framingmember, such that the channel penetrates into the length of wood to lessthan the depth; (d) providing an insulative material; and (e)introducing the insulative material into the channel to form theconstruction framing member. The insulative material may be either asolid component sized to fit in and preferably fill the channel, or afoam or other liquid insulative material that can be injected into thechannel to fill the channel, wherein upon solidification of theinsulative material in the channel the construction framing member isformed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

While the invention is claimed in the concluding portions hereof,preferred embodiments are provided in the accompanying detaileddescription which may be best understood in conjunction with theaccompanying diagrams where like parts in each of the several diagramsare labeled with like numerals, and where:

FIG. 1a is a perspective view of a framing member in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 1b is a top plan view of the framing member of FIG. 1 a;

FIG. 1c is a side elevation view of the framing member of FIG. 1 a;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a construction framing member accordingto the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the steps of one embodiment of the methodof manufacture of the construction framing member of the presentinvention.

The present invention will now be described with reference to theaccompanying drawings of illustrated embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS

The following discussion provides many example embodiments of theinventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a singlecombination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter isconsidered to include all possible combinations of the disclosedelements.

Generally speaking, the inventive concept consists of the placement ofan insulated thermal break into a dimensional construction framingmember. The insulation provides a thermal break in assembled walls usingthe member, while providing some rigidity and structural integrity tothe member as well. By placing the insulation in a channel that extendsthrough most but not all of the depth of the member, streamlinedmanufacturing options are presented, resulting in enhanced economy and anovel improvement over the prior art.

Referring now in detail to FIGS. 1a to 1c , a framing member 10according to the present invention is illustrated. The framing member 10is a construction framing member 34, as will be described below. Theframing member 10 comprises a channel 12 which in the exemplaryembodiment extends the length of the framing member 10; it will be clearto one skilled in the art that the channel 12 need not extend the entirelength of the framing member 10 in order to enhance the insulativeproperties of the framing member 10, but having a relatively continuouschannel 12 along the entire length will optimize such properties andstreamline manufacturing. This channel 12 is for the receipt ofinsulative material 32, as will be described below. The framing member10 is preferably composed of wood, due to the ease with which thechannel 12 can be cut out of a wooden substrate and the utility ofwooden framing members in construction contexts.

The framing member 10 comprises a first section 14 and a second section16, separated by the channel 12 which extends inwardly from the outersurface 30 of the framing member 10. As the channel 12 does not passcompletely through the framing member 10, a thin remainder of materialconnects the first and second sections 14, 16, namely the connectingsection 18. The channel 12 is therefore only exposed in the exemplaryembodiment at the outer surface 30 and opposed first and second ends 26,28 of the framing member 10.

The channel 12 is preferably a channel running substantially the lengthof the framing member 10 and exposed at the outer surface 30 of theframing member 10, and it is defined by the inner surface 20 of thefirst section 14, the inner surface 22 of the second section 16 and theinner surface 24 of the connecting section 18.

Turning now to FIG. 2, a construction framing member 34 according to thepresent invention is illustrated. The construction framing membercomprises the framing member 10, with an insulative material 32 disposedwithin the channel 12. In this way, the original dimensions of thelumber are maintained but with the presence of a thermal breakincorporated within the construction framing member 34 to enhance theinsulative properties of the building material.

The manufacture of a framing member 10 in accordance with the presentinvention can be accomplished using known tools and methods ofwoodworking. First, a length of wood suitable for use as a framingmember is provided, and this may be a standard 2 inch×4 inch or 2 inch×6inch piece of lumber that is commonly used in construction and thereforewill likely be of suitable dimensions for the building plans. Thislength of wood will have a standard depth, 2 inches in most cases. Next,a standard wood-cutting tool such as a table saw or router table isprovided, the wood-cutting tool having a cutting implement. This cuttingimplement (a saw blade in the case of a table saw, or a router bit inthe case of a router table) can be set at a desired height above thework surface of the tool, and in the case of a length of wood having adepth of 2 inches the desired cutting implement height setting ispreferably approximately 1¾ inches, although the height setting can beany length less than 2 inches. With the operative height of the cuttingimplement set at less than the depth of the piece of lumber, the userthen cuts a channel 12 in the length of wood in the direction of thedepth using the cutting implement in a manner well known to thoseskilled in the art, such that the channel 12 penetrates into the lengthof wood to less than the depth. When the cutting of the channel 12 iscompleted, a portion of wood still remains intact beyond the set reachof the cutting implement, specifically the connecting section 18. Thewidth of the channel 12 can vary as needed given the predeterminedinsulative properties that the final construction framing member is tohave, and one skilled in the art will know how to use variouswood-cutting tools to achieve channels 12 of varying widths.

Whereas the insulative material 32 could be introduced in any number ofways, including cutting a piece of solid insulation to the size of thechannel 12 and fixing it in place (by glue or other known means) betweenthe first and second sections 14, 16, it is preferable to usepolyurethane foam insulation as the insulative material 32 and injectsame into the channel 12. Once the injected foam insulation hashardened, the waste can be cut away such that the outer surfaces of theinsulative material 32 are flush with the outer surface 30, first end 26and second end 28 of the framing member 10. The width of the insulativematerial 32 can be generally between ½ inch and 1 inch, although thewidth could vary depending on the heat conductivity of the particularinsulative material 32 and the thickness required to obtain the desireddegree of insulation. Where the construction framing member 34 issecured in place in a wall, with the first section 14 disposed towardthe building interior and the second section 16 disposed toward theoutside of the building, heat transfer can be minimized from the firstsection 14 of the framing member 10 to the second section 16 of theframing member 10, thus reducing the thermal bridge between the innerwall and the outer wall of the building.

It should also be noted that the above description is of one exemplaryembodiment only as illustrated by the accompanying Figures, and the sizeof the first section 14, second section 16 and insulative material 32could each be adjusted for a number of reasons. For example, theinsulative material 32 could be thickened or thinned based upon theparticular thermal requirements of the application in which theconstruction framing member 34 when assembled would be used. Also, thefirst and/or second sections 14,16 might be sized appropriately suchthat their utility in conventional construction techniques would bemaximized, e.g. such that they would still most strongly supportfasteners attached thereto, etc. In one embodiment, the completeconstruction framing member 34, including the first and second sections14, 16 plus the integrated insulative material 32 could in total beapproximately the same size as a standard dimensional framing member,for example in total being the approximate dimensions of a standard 2inch×4 inch or 2 inch×6 inch framing member, such that it could beeasily interchanged into pre-existing construction methods and marketacceptance of the product could be maximized. It will be understood byone skilled in the art that there is no specific ideal set of dimensionsfor the construction framing member 34 of the present invention but thatany number of different pre-existing dimensional lumber sizes could beduplicated using the construction framing member 34.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart demonstrating the steps in one embodiment of themethod of manufacture of the present invention. As outlined above, thebase or substrate for the construction framing member of the presentinvention is a dimensional piece of framing lumber, which would betypically used in the production or manufacturable wall or otherstructure requiring the integration of the thermal break therein. Thefirst step in the method shown in this embodiment is to provide acutting tool which could machine the channel 12 as outlined elsewhereherein into the substrate or framing member 34. In some cases this couldcomprise a table saw, a guided router or the like, or in othercircumstances of purpose built machine for the manufacturer of theconstruction framing member of the present invention can be providedwhich was capable either in fixed or adjustable fashion of cutting thedesired channel into the framing member or substrate, through some butnot all of its depth, into which insulating material could be adhered.The cutting machine which would machine the channel into the framingmember would include one or more guides common offenses or the like toguide the framing member in appropriate relation to the cutting tool forthe formation of the channel. Step 3-1 shows the provision of thecutting tool.

A framing member would be fed into and through the cutting tool,resulting in the kind of a channel into the framing member extendingthrough the majority of the depth of the framing member alongsubstantially all of its length, and across a portion of its width.Cutting of the channel into the framing member is shown at step 3-2.

Following the cutting of the channel into the framing member, shown at3-2, insulating material would be placed and adhered into the channel,forming the thermal break in the finished construction framing member.The specific nature of this insulation placement and adhesion step, 3-3,will depend upon the nature of the insulating material to be used. Insome cases channel may be cut to the same size of precut orpre-manufactured insulating members which could simply be placed andglued into the channel, or in other cases rolled insulation could beplaced into the channel and adhered. It is specifically contemplatedthat in some embodiments of the method of manufacture, the insulatingmaterial which will be used would be foamed polymeric insulation, whichcould simply be injected into the channel as the framing member passedout of the cutting tool, such that it would expand to fill the channeland potentially be trimmed or otherwise cosmetically finished, to yieldthe finished construction framing member.

It is specifically contemplated that a machine for the practice of theentirety of this method could be developed in a circumstance where itwas decided to produce large quantities of the construction framingmember of the present invention, and any machine which would accomplishthe steps of guiding a framing member through the cutting of the channeltherein, and the subsequent placement and adhesion of insulatingmaterial within the channel, is also contemplated within the scope ofthe present invention. As can also be seen, the manufacturer of theproduct of the present invention could be done in a reasonablycontinuous process particularly where purpose built machine for thecombined coming of the channel and placement and adhesion of theinsulative material was produced, or a combination of equipment wasplaced in line to work in such a continuous feeding fashion. Again, anymachine which allowed for the guided kind of a channel until framingmember and the subsequent placement and adhesion of an insulated thermalbreak therein, otherwise in accordance with the remainder of the presentinvention outlined herein, is explicitly contemplated within the scopeof the present invention.

As can be readily seen, then, the framing member and constructionframing member of the present invention present significant advantagesover the prior art. Enhanced thermal insulation properties are providedin a product that can be manufactured in industry standard sizes forcase of implementation. There is no need to implement a novel studarrangement or spacing that may weaken the structure, but rather thestructural strength of wood is maintained while integrating a thermalbreak.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Thus, while certain aspects and embodiments of theinvention have been described, these have been presented by way ofexample only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.It will be apparent to those of skill in the art that by modificationthe present invention can be optimized for use in a wide range ofconditions and applications. It will also be obvious to those of skillin the art that there are various ways and designs with which to producethe apparatus and methods of the present invention. The illustratedembodiments are therefore not intended to limit the scope of theinvention, but to provide examples of the apparatus and method to enablethose of skill in the art to appreciate the inventive concept.

I claim:
 1. A construction framing member with improved thermalinsulation properties, comprising: a. a framing member having a length,a width and a depth, capable of use in a traditional constructionframing function; b. a channel formed in the framing member, the channelhaving a length, a width and a depth and being sized such that: i. thelength of the channel runs substantially the length of the framingmember; ii. the depth of the channel is less than the depth of theframing member; and iii. the width of the channel is less than the widthof the framing member; and c. insulating material adhered within thechannel, said insulating material effective to reduce thermal transferacross the width of the framing member.
 2. The construction framingmember of claim 1 wherein the depth of the channel is at least 50% ofthe depth of the framing member.
 3. The construction framing member ofclaim 1 wherein the depth of the channel is at least 80% of the depth ofthe framing member.
 4. The construction framing member of claim 1wherein the width of the channel is less than 50% of the width of theframing member.
 5. The construction framing member of claim 1 whereinthe insulating material comprises at least one of fiberglass, mineralwool, cotton, a foam, a solid insulating material, or an injectableself-solidifying liquid.
 6. The framing produce of claim 5 wherein theinsulating material comprises a polymeric foam.
 7. The constructionframing member of claim 1 wherein the framing member is sized to havedimensions substantially the same as a standard lumber size of a lumberframing member.
 8. The construction framing member of claim 1 whereinthe channel is positioned such that the framing member is divided into afirst section, a second section, and a connecting section, wherein thechannel is positioned between the first section and second section andoverlays the connecting section.
 9. The construction framing member ofclaim 8 wherein the first section and sections have different widths.10. A method of manufacturing a construction framing member withimproved thermal insulation properties, comprising: a. providing aframing member, the framing member having a length, a width and a depth;b. forming a channel in the framing member which is configured toreceive an insulating material, the channel having a length a width anda depth, wherein the channel is sized such that: i. the length of thechannel runs substantially the length of the framing member; ii. thedepth of the channel is less than the depth of the framing member; iii.the width of the channel is less that the width of the framing member;and c. placing and adhering an insulating material in the channel suchthat the channel is substantially filled with the insulating material.11. The method of claim 10 wherein the operation of forming the channelis performed by sawing or routing.
 12. The method of claim 11 whereinthe framing member is wood.
 13. The method of claim 10 wherein the depthof the channel is least 50% of the depth of the framing member.
 14. Themethod of claim 10 wherein the depth of the channel is at least 80% ofthe depth of the framing member.
 15. The method of claim 10 wherein thewidth of the channel is less than 50% of the width of the framingmember.
 16. The method of claim 10 wherein the insulating materialcomprises at least one of fiberglass, mineral wool, cotton, a foam, asolid insulating material, or an injectable self-solidifying liquid. 17.The method of claim 16 wherein the insulating material is adhered in thechannel using glue.
 18. The method of claim 16 wherein the insulatingmaterial is self-adhering in the channel.
 19. The method of claim 18wherein the insulating material comprises a polymeric foam.
 20. Themethod of claim 19 wherein the foam expands once placed in the channelto fill and adhere within the channel.
 21. The method of claim 10wherein the framing member is sized to have dimensions substantially thesame as a standard lumber size of a lumber framing member.
 22. Themethod of claim 10 wherein the channel is formed such that the framingmember is divided into a first section, a second section, and aconnecting section, where the channel is between the first section andsecond section, and overlays the connecting section.
 23. The method ofclaim 22 wherein the first section and the second section have differentwidths.